#WatchaWearinJanuary Blog Tour – WBM Diana Wrap Dress

This is my first time joining a tour, and I figured what did I have to lose by signing on for the #watchawearinjanuary Blog Tour? I mean, I HAVE to wear clothes, so it should be easy enough to take a couple photos and share them with you here – am I right?

Today, I’m writing about the TWO Wardrobe By Me (affiliate link*) Diana Wrap Dresses that I made this weekend. Yep – you read that right – I made TWO in one weekend!!!

Let me tell you the highlight – I seriously LOVE this dress! Wrap dresses were a staple for me when I first started working – but I could never find one that fit just right. As a petite woman with a full C/D cup I’ve always had issues with the dresses I would find in the stores… They were always either too short (I prefer knee length), displayed too much cleavage (Um, great for a night out on the town, but not so much for a stodgy bank) or didn’t have enough coverage for when the wind blew (this was particularly alarming since I wore them to work — let’s just say I’m no Marilyn Monroe – it was NEVER a glamorous position to be in for me!)

Christina, the designer, designs patterns for a C-cup in her smaller size range. For my fellow sewing geeks, this means a 3 inch difference between the high bust and full bust – and confusingly – does not always correspond with bra cup size! This is a MAJOR departure from the big four, and, for me, means no FBA (insert happy dance here!).

As for adjustments, I am short-waisted, so I typically take 2″ out of the bodice of my patterns and transfer that length back to the skirt so that the dress hits at the knee. In doing so, I had to fiddle with the length of the edgeband which finishes off the cross front of the bodice edge – here it needed a little bit more security so I hand sewed in a snap (it’s not visible from the front).

I received this paisley double-brushed poly fabric in an auction box from Knitpop – I wasn’t sold on the print and let it sit on my shelf a couple months, until I decided I would use it as a muslin since what I REALLY wanted was a black version! Seems to be a happy accident, because not only does it fit well – but did I mention how much I loved it???

I made a couple additional tweaks for my second version in black. Both fabrics are 4-way stretch double brushed poly (similar to the fabric used in Lularoe leggings – if you are familiar with it), and pretty much feel like secret pajamas. I tightened the edgeband (didn’t require a snap any longer) and slimmed the sleeves (I have VERY slender arms, and like my sleeves very fitted). I am THRILLED with the outcome!

Thanks for reading! Ti (the tour host) has secured 2 prize packs! She’s giving away a total of 59 patterns and $235 worth of gift cards! Be sure to come back every day to register for chances to win:

*Note: This post contains affiliate links – that means if you click on them, and/or purchase something, I make a small amount of money. This helps pay for the costs of running this blog, and if I’m lucky – some fabric or patterns to keep sewing! So thank you for your consideration!

You look gorgeous in these! I’ve always wanted to do a real wrap dress, but the only place I’d wear it is church and I don’t trust my kids to not cause a wardrobe malfunction. Maybe if I added a snap like you did and wore a slip underneath I’d be fine though.

What a NICE job, Mac, you did on both dresses! You inspire me, and get me excited about sewing again! Getting over the FOF (fear of failure) mode. Guess I just need to DO it! Lovelove the paisley-both look fabulous on you!!

These are beautiful dresses. Diane von Furstenberg would be proud! You did a great job adjusting the height of the wrap; I know that’s not always an easy thing to do. Both of these dresses fill the requirements for the Day and Night Dress Challenge that I’m hosting on my blog. The linkup will be available starting on Sunday, Jan 8th-January 28th. You can read more about it at: http://elizabethmadethis.com/the-day-and-night-dress-challenge/ I’d love to see you enter. You’ve made some lovely dresses!

Starting before January 8th was completely legal for this contest. You absolutely can enter! I know how hard it is to get stuff done when you’re ready to go yet the starting gun hasn’t gone off, so I thought I’d reward the early birds like you with extra time if they so desired. You can linkup your project now at http://elizabethmadethis.com/enter-day-night-dress-challenge/
You’ll be the first one! Good luck with everything, and again, you made two beautiful dresses. I’ll have to look this pattern up. Wrap dresses have always been a fitting nemesis for me.